1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of garment drying devices and, more particularly, to a novel drying device that may readily be inserted into a shoe or boot for effectively drying the boot without damaging the material of the shoe or boot.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
In the past, it has been the conventional practice to dry footwear by placing the footwear immediately adjacent to a radiating heat source such as a gas heater, steam heater or, in some instances, placing the footwear into an oven. Also, electrical heaters may be used whereby the footwear is placed adjacent to the heater so that the heat radiating therefrom for elevating room temperature may also be used for drying the footwear.
Problems and difficulties have been encountered when employing these conventional heating techniques and procedures which stem largely from the fact that excessive heat is used which rapidly dries the footwear and, in the case of leather material, the leather becomes stiff, hard and rigid. Sometimes, discoloration takes place where the leather turns to a chalky color. In other instances, when the footwear is composed of plastic such as for ski boots and the like, a fabric liner composed of polypropylene is placed inside the hard plastic shell and conventional heating methods do not promote heating transference through the hard plastic shell into a wet or damp liner. Therefore, drying does not effect and oftentimes the user must use the boots or footwear with wet or damp lining.
Therefore, a long standing need has existed to provide a novel footwear drying device or apparatus which is portable in use and which may be readily installed into the interior of a wet boot or shoe whereby heat radiating from the device will readily dry the lining or footwear itself.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a novel means for drying wet or damp boots which will not adversely affect the material of the boots or its lining.